18 / 64
18
MAJOR NATIONS IN A GLOBAL WORLD: BRAZIL
The first woman president of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff, elected in 2011 and
reelected in 2014.
tic chores, including raising the children. Families were large and extended. Some
households included grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins. Family gatherings
were great opportunities to socialize, gossip, and enjoy one another’s company.
The extended family network also provided a safety net during tough times.
A WOMAN FIGHTER
Dilma Rousseff was not the typical Brazilian woman. Born in a middle-
class family in the coffee-growing region of Minas Gerais, Rousseff was
a
Marxist
guerrillafighter heavily involved inbattling the country’smilitary rulers,
who in 1964 overthrew the government of João Goulart. Rousseff fought against
the military dictatorship and was jailed and tortured. She was the daughter of a
Bulgarian political
exile
, who had been a member of Bulgaria’s Communist party
in the 1920s and later a successful businessman.
While the extended family still is important in Brazil, things began chang-
ing slowly as the family structure shifted from a male-dominated structure.
Women, who were once
relegated
to the rearing of children, began taking a
more active role in providing for their families. Some, such as Rousseff, went to
college and received an education.